I’m so behind on book reviews right now, not to mention everything else – sorry about that! But part of the problem with this one was that after I’d finished reading it, I needed to chew on it a while before I could really put any thoughts together. I both loved this novel and found it almost unbearable to read at times, and now that it’s over, I think it’s safe to say it’s one of the most graphically violent novels I’ve ever read. So graphic, in fact, that when I heard that “they” were planning on turning it into a film, partly because, I would assume, No Country for Old Men did so well, I literally cringed. Do I really want to spend two hours watching white guys scalp Native American babies and vice versa? I’m thinking not so much.
The thing is, despite the horrific violence in this novel (made doubly horrifying by the fact it’s based on real events, by the way), it’s so brilliantly written I found myself hoarding its pages. I wouldn’t read it unless I was in the perfect setting for reading, and since I do at least 50% of my reading on the bus or while I’m walking somewhere, that cut out a lot of book time. The next thing I knew, I’d been working on the same book for two weeks, which is pretty unusual for me!
Tags: Fiction
June 28, 2008 at 10:19 pm |
No surprise Oprah didn’t mention THIS book when she interviewed McCarthy. I’d also recommend his earlier books, especially the linguistic tour-de-force Suttree and the hilariously depraved Child of God.